Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations Rock shoreline advice

The project continues!
My 1.3 acre pond was dug last summer. The only improvements to the hole in the ground I had done at that time was addition of a floodgate from Agridrain, and a washed sand beach with geotextile under it.
I hadn't done any more due to my lack of experience and confidence (I wanted to be able to drain it back down and repair/reconstruct easily if there were problems).
I have now noticed that things are going swimmingly and plan on putting riprap down around the "people side" of the pond to keep weeds down.
My local Soil and Water Conservationist figures that I can get away with 6" rock, but he admittedly only deals with lakeshore and they typically put down larger rock for those applications.

So, do you guys concur with his assessment? Do the fellow Northerners in the crowd think that pressure from ice will be an issue with smaller rock?

Also, if I go with the smaller rock, I was thinking I'd try to dump it (slowly) into the water with the pond still full, and let it roll down to the bottom. Does this make sense, or am I trying to dream my way out of manual labor?

Thanks,
Corey

CZ, I put in 8 tons of rock in my pond after it was filled with water with no problems. I used a front end loader on my tractor to get away with the manual labor issue and to be able to place rock at different depths. Just drove the 4x4 tractor in as far as I felt comfortable. I did not notice any problems with the fish that were already in there. Maybe some experts can offer a different view?

This is what I did, rock-wise. It was about structure so probably doesn't apply in your case.

Rock

Thanks Dwight.
You're right that it doesn't apply to this particular question, but it does play into some other scenarios I had envisioned to get some structure in there.
I see that you put your rock on the ice and let the spring thaw do the dirty work. Did you have any issues with the ice moving/migrating during thaw-out?

I'm in the Hutchinson area, how far are you from there?

btw: BEAUTIFUL pond!!

Corey

See this one for how Dwight did the job.

Rock and Roll Ruby
http://www.pondboss.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Main=7867&Number=80404#Post80404

In new ponds where rock lined wave washed shorelines are anticipated a stone ledge about 12"-16" wide is cut into the side of the bank several feet below the planned high water line. This stone ledge helps keep the stone (1"-4" dia) from moving down the steep sloping sides. Even then after several years (6-10) the stone "works its way" down the side and usually either needs pulled/scraped back up with a tractor bucket or needs more stone added. Steepness of your side walls may influence how well the stone stays put by just dumping it down into the water along the shoreline. Larger stone of 6"-12" dia may also have an affect on how well it stays in place.

Corey,

When I get to the point of spreading rock for my pond, depending on access I'm going to consider a stone slinger truck. Precise delivery and they can throw it up to 75' or so depending on the material. I don't know what maximum size is that they can handle, although on the job I think I've seen at least 4". Here's a link I found that shows an example. Good luck.

Bryan